When Fate Steps In
by thescarletlioness
Summary: AU What if fate decided to step in and send someone to save Harry from the future he had to live? This is the story of Halle Potter and her race against time to save her twin brother from the future we all know. Lucky for her, Fate has some tricks up its sleeves. Maybe she can save more than just Harry in the process. Rated M because of where I see this story going.
1. A Different Story

Once upon a time there lived a boy named Harry James Potter. He held many titles in his life, The Boy Who Lived and The Chosen One among them. The night Lily Potter, neé Evans, gave birth to him, his fate was sealed forever. He was destined to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders, live a life scarred physically and mentally, and one-day die to save those he loved.

But, that is another story. Yes, his fate was sealed when he was born the last day of July to a witch and wizard who defied Voldemort three times and were two of the most powerful and talented students Hogwarts had ever seen. What gets forgotten is how strong magic is and what can come of it when two people are desperate to save their son and fate steps in to help.

This is the story of Harry Potter, and his twin sister Halle.


	2. Chapter 1

Halle Potter was currently standing in the bathroom of her Aunt and Uncles house trying to calm her racing heart.

"This must be what they mean when they talk about anxiety attacks on the news," she thought to herself.

For once she let some of her control lose and let the emotions that were constantly brimming at the surface out. As the familiar dull ache of guilt hit her, she felt the bile rise in her throat and promptly got sick in the toilet next to her.

After cleaning up her mess, Halle took a few steading breaths and regained her control and thought about what she had heard and what brought on this fierce reaction.

* * *

It was just another summer day in the Dursley household. Harry and Halle had come home for the summer and were informed that Marge Dursley, Uncle Vernon's vile sister, would be arriving next weekend and staying with them for a few weeks.

Aunt Petunia had thrown the house into chaos, having her niece and nephew clean the place spotless. She had only let them stop when the guest bedroom was pristine and the rest of the house sparkled. Not to mention, the callouses on their hands had started bleeding and were starting to make more of a mess than they had started out with.

Finally, the day had come and Harry and Halle had been sentenced to kitchen duty with their Aunt. Dinner was to be a lavish affair, as both Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon went out of their way to impress Marge, and only Dudley was allowed to lounge about watching his daily shows.

The only rule the Dursley's placed on their sons tv habits was that they had to at least watch the first 15 minutes of the 12:00 and 5:00 news. It would go against their perfect personas if they had no idea what was going on in the world after all.

It was when the 12:00 news came on that Halle had suddenly taken ill. At first she hadn't been paying attention. She was currently icing the cake they would be having for dessert and was rather proud of the intricate designs she had made. Then after finishing their headline about how teenagers were showing an increase in anxiety and depression rates all over the country,

"Serves them right if they can't manage their time properly." Uncle Vernon had commented "Obviously it's not the case with everyone as our Dudley is just fine" Aunt Petunia chimed in.

As Halle rolled her eyes she thought, "Of course, because what stress does the prince of Privet drive face" and as she made eye contact with Harry who was peeling the potatoes she knew his thoughts were along the same lines.

Sounds came from the telly, signaling the start of a very important announcement.

_Sirius Black, a convict known for the murder of 13 people 11 years ago, has escaped from prison. He is said to be on the run, highly dangerous, and armed with a gun. People are encouraged to keep their distance if they come across him and call the help line immediately. He is said to be mentally unsound and should not be approached for any reason._

All it took was Sirius Black and escaped from prison to register in the almost 13 year olds brain and the hyperventilating began. The cake, having been almost knocked over when Halle jumped at the tv's announcement, was currently being held up by magic, though no one in the room could tell. Once she was sure it was steady she turned to Harry and her aunt and said, "I'll be right back."

She barely caught a glimpse of the look of concern on Harry's face before she ran upstairs and locked herself in the bathroom.

Now, looking at her sweaty pale face, she realized that everything she had come to dread was starting. And all it took was one Sirius Black escaping for her to know life was about to get a whole lot harder for the Potter's.

What a lot of people didn't know was that Halle Lilian Potter had a secret. A secret so big and so deep, her own twin brother didn't know about it. If she had it her way, Harry would never find out, because it revolved around him.

As the guilt ate her alive from the inside she kept repeating to herself "I couldn't have helped them. It isn't what I'm supposed to do. I couldn't have helped them. It wasn't what I was sent here to do."

These four lines, her current mantra, were all that brought back her control and kept her grounded in the present. Because Halle only had two regrets in her life. Behind not being able to save her parents, number two was not being able to save Sirius.


	3. Chapter 2

**AUTHORS NOTE: Not really sure if I'm doing this right, but seeing as this is my first story, please have patience with me. Feel free to *kindly* point out errors as I'm learning how to work this site. Let me know what you think!**

* * *

Halle stumbled downstairs and knew her absence hadn't gone unnoticed.

While Aunt Petunia tsked at her and mumbled about wasting time, Harry gave her a long look saying they would be talking about this later. Which, luckily for Halle, meant she had time to think of a cover story.

What struck her first was how much Harry and Halle Potter were inverses of each other, and their parents.

Harry, from what people had told him the last two years at Hogwarts, was the spitting image of this father – long and lanky, shooting up over the summers and adding bulk to his thin frame during the school year, with messy, jet black hair that couldn't be tamed, tanned skin from many Quidditch practices and had to wear round glasses to see more than a foot in front of him. Everything about him screamed James Potter, except for the eyes. His eyes were Lily's. Emerald green and full of questions, he was constantly taking in the world around him.

If Harry was almost all James, then Halle was almost all Lily. Long, red hair waved itself down her back, resting just below her shoulder blades. She was on the shorter side, 5'0 to Harry's 5'5, and while he was expected to keep growing, she figured she only had a few more inches to go. Her figure was still that of a child, but as their 13th birthday approached, her hips were starting to create more of a figure. The only thing different about her, just like her brother, was her eyes. Her hazel eyes, full of knowledge and mischief, were the eyes of James Potter.

Their appearance isn't the only thing that made them inverses of each other. What Harry didn't know, that Halle did, was the biggest part of her secret. Harry, who was conceived from Lily and James' biology first, was formed with their magic second, the usual way witches and wizards procreated.

Halle, however, was never supposed to exist. Fate had decided to step in when Harry's future had been solidified and had conceived Halle from her parent's magic first and biology second.

The biggest reason she didn't lose control, is because no one could know how powerful she was. Halle had been aware of her purpose in the world from the moment she first opened her eyes. She had known what was going on around her. Known what was coming. Known what would be if she hadn't been born.

Her hollow chest was filled with guilt constantly because she KNEW. As babies the Marauders had always confided in her and Harry, thinking as babies they wouldn't, couldn't, understand. For Harry, that had been true, but for Halle with her alert eyes and steely focus, she understood every word. Her parents whispered conversations about how they had to keep Halle a secret and ways to keep their family safe; Remus' long confessions about his struggles with the other werewolves and how he felt his friendships slipping through his fingers; Sirius' promises to keep their family safe and his hidden fear for the future; and finally Peter's admissions, his guilt and reasons, and ultimately his betrayal.

Halle had known Peter would betray them. She had known once he found out, Sirius would go after him. No matter how hard she cried and wailed and threw her fits, she couldn't distract them enough to keep them from choosing Peter in the end and leaving Remus out.

So now, all these years later, how could she tell Harry. That seeing Sirius Black's name on the tv only brought back the fact that she, as a 15 month old, didn't have the capabilities to stop that night from happening. That the only reason she was here was to save him and that didn't give her the chance to save them too.

Then again… with Sirius free, maybe she had a second chance. Maybe she could play along to the ignorance of the wizarding world and their brief happy childhood and pretend she didn't know anything until she found a way.

Yes, it was settled then. Feign ignorance until a plan was in place and she knew why he finally escaped after all this time.

By now, Halle had been in her own little world for long enough, she realized Aunt Petunia was shooing her and Harry out of the room to go upstairs and get ready. They hurried up to their shared room and both tried to find something decent to wear.

Halle wasn't sure who had the worse end of the deal, Harry or herself. He had to wear Dudley's huge hand-me downs, while she had to wear Aunt Petunia's. She at least got something new on occasion, but it usually was the worst outfit in the world and only because her Aunt wanted to dress her like a doll for her afternoon teas.

As they both stood on their respective sides of the small divide they had managed to erect in their room, Harry pulled her out of her musings and said "You'd think as we're getting older they would think to separate us."

Halle huffed and responded, "We were lucky enough to move out of that cupboard, they wouldn't waste any more space on us," and was shocked her voice actually came out steady and calm.

Harry, peaking around now that they were both dressed and finishing up their outfits, finally asked what she was dreading, "Are you okay, by the way, you looked like you had seen a ghost. Or at least seen Nearly Headless Nick pull his head off his body."

Halle turned to face him. "Yeah I think it was just the heat and tasting the sugar from the cake throughout the day paired a semi empty stomach. It just hit me out of nowhere, but now it's passed."

"Okay, for a second there I wondered if the thought Marge coming had finally done you in."

Halle laughed, "No, unfortunately she hasn't pushed me that far yet."

Harry turned to her, seeing they were both ready to go. "Well I guess we better get down there seeing as she'll be here any minute then."

With that the twins walked downstairs to accept their roles in the house for the next few weeks - waiting on everyone and making themselves scarce. And for Halle, not thinking about Sirius Black and the looming future ahead.


	4. Chapter 3

The next week dragged on for Halle and Harry.

Owls came at night, seemingly aware that they wouldn't be let in during the day, bringing news from their friends.

Hermione was off in France, taking in the sights with her family. Ron and the twins had actually gone to visit their brother Bill in Egypt, with Ginny's letter revealing to Halle how she felt it was to help her get over the horrors of the last year. Finally, their school letters came, a week after Marge did, bringing everything the needed for their next school year.

Along with the letters, were permission slips to allow them to visit the town of Hogsmeade on designated weekends.

Halle quickly turned to Harry and said, "You know, we've actually been really well behaved with Marge here, maybe they'll sign it for us?"

He responded with a hopeful look in his eye, "Maybe, you should probably try Aunt Petunia and I can try Uncle Vernon, then we have a better chance of them saying yes."

As the day went on, they each cornered their respective relative and asked in their most charming way possible if they would sign their permission slips. Both received the same answer "If you continue to be on your best behavior while Marge is here, perhaps we will consider it once she is gone."

Neither Halle nor Harry could believe their luck, surely they could keep themselves in check for a few more weeks?

As it turned out, Marge made their end of the bargain very hard to keep.

On her last night there, the Dursley's went all out for dinner again. This time, they brought out the drinks. Wine was following throughout dinner, with Brandy coming out quickly after dinner.

Both Marge and Vernon were hard for the twins to stomach on a good day when they were sober, but as they kept drinking, the insults grew worse and worse.

Halle could take the comments about her appearance, how she probably threw herself at all of the boys she saw, hoping one would take pity on her and how she would never amount to anything. Harry too shouldered a good deal of insults about his behavior and how he was probably going to end up on the streets one day. He played the part well and made sure to answer all her questions, including going the extra mile with, "Yes, I've been beat with a cane loads of times at my institution."

It wasn't until she turned to the subject of her beloved dogs that things went wrong. For Marge, it was the perfect topic to compare to their parents.

"Now Petunia, you mustn't blame yourself" Marge slurred through her third glass of brandy, "They can't help it that you got the only good stock in the family."

Halle and Harry hurriedly cleaned the table of dishes and started washing them. They didn't like where this was going and kept glancing at the other to make sure the other was okay.

"Probably an alcoholic the father, didn't you say, Vernon, that he was unemployed"

_crash_

Marge jumped as the glass in her hand shattered.

Both Harry and Halle stopped and stared, wondering which one did it. Halle quickly worked to organize her emotions. She hadn't felt herself lose control, but knew she easily could have.

"Oh goodness," Marge laughed, "Always knew that firm grip was going to get me in trouble one day."

Next to her, Harry sighed, and Halle understood. "_Maybe they won't think it was one of us_" she thought just as Uncle Vernon was glaring at them and making it known they were to come clean it up.

Halle quickly grabbed the rag the was using to dry dishes and cleaned up the glass in the floor.

"Would you like me to get you another glass, Aunt Marge?" she asked, looking at the already flushed and swaying woman in front of her.

"Of course she would." Aunt Petunia admonished. "Harry, bring her one now."

Harry brought a new glass over and refilled it for her, not before Marge could focus all of her attention on them again.

"My aren't you both a pair. Spitting images of your parents aren't you? Well, both looking like the runts of the liter to me." She turned to Uncle Vernon, "Honestly, parents probably went and ran themselves off the road by the looks of these two. Nope. Didn't want the responsibility I'm sure and took the easy way out, leaving them with you."

"If it were me," she continued, "I would have shipped them off the second they came."

By now Halle could hear the blood flowing in her ears. Her breaths were coming out heavy. Harry wasn't doing much better from the look of it as his hand was shaking, pouring more drinks for everyone else at the table.

Dudley didn't notice anything, as he was already in the living room watching his evening shows, but Petunia and Vernon were looking back and forth between Marge and the twins with nervous faces.

Suddenly, Marge made to point her finger at them and start another tirade. Yet, when she looked down, it was starting to swell.

All of a sudden, Halle's heart dropped even more. "_Am I in check?"_ she thought quickly.

Marge was continuing to balloon up and it was all Halle could do, but stand there and watch it happen. Looking at Harry she mouthed, "Are you okay?" and received and shake of the head back.

It was Harry then. As easily as she could have reversed the spell, her magic was still stronger with her wand, which was unfortunately, in her trunk upstairs.

Maybe she could run up there and come back before it got worse… but no, "_Now Marge is starting to float out of her seat_." She realized.

Uncle Vernon had gotten up and started chasing his sister outside as she was steadily rising higher and Aunt Petunia was right behind him.

In the second it took for them to lock eyes, Harry and Halle both bolted for the stairs. Running up as fast as they could, they grabbed their wands out of their trunks, snapped them shut after adding the few things they had out and flew back downstairs.

Vernon was already back in and yelling after them. "Bring her back! Bring her back, you horrible children or you'll never see daylight again."

In one movement they had both pointed their wands at him, causing their uncle to stop short.

"She deserved it," Halle spat.

"Besides, we wouldn't know how to fix her anyway," Followed Harry.

"Get out then." Yelled Vernon. "You can't do magic outside of school. If you're expelled, you have no place here."

"We weren't planning on staying anyway," Halle yelled over her shoulder as she flung the front door open with Harry on her tail.

They made it to the end of the street and started to slow to a walk. As they went on a few more blocks, the gravity of what happened hit them.

Harry looked at Halle as they sat down on their trunks. "Hedwig is out delivering mail to the Weasley's. And Athena is delivering mail to Hermione. I've got my broom that we could try and ride somewhere, but I'm not sure what we would do with both our trunks."

Halle sighed, as she opened her mouth to reply she heard a twig snap behind them.

Whirling around with her wand out, she whispered "What was that."

"Lumos" they both said simultaneously and Halle gasped as they were now facing a large black dog.

"_There's no way, could it be him?" _she thought.

As she was about to say something to Harry, she realized he had fallen over and now was on the ground with his wand arm out. While he was moving to get up, a triple decker bus popped up out of nowhere.

Halle spun around and saw that the dog had vanished with the arrival of the large bus, so she pushed it from her mind. Vaguely registering that this was the Knight Bus and would take them wherever they needed to go.

Following Harry onto the bus, as Stu? No, Stan _was that his name_?, was getting their trunks aboard, Halle whispered, "We should probably go to the Leaky Cauldron, from there we could go and find someplace in Muggle London to stay for the night?"

Harry nodded in agreement and told Stan "Leaky Cauldron in London," as he paid for their ride.


	5. Chapter 4

**Hello! Please forgive me. I wrote this chapter a while ago and something didn't feel right. I get random bursts of inspiration, including the ending of this long story, and had to get that out of the way first. Uploading will be sporadic, but I wan to do it justice. **

**That being said, because I have forgotten before - I don't own anything.**

**Enjoy and please review!**

* * *

What followed Harry and Halle's bus ride was only that of a miracle.

Fudge, the Minister of Magic, had met them right at the entrance and promptly taken them upstairs to a private dining room. There they learned nothing would come of the incident and that they could stay at the Leaky Cauldron for the rest of the summer. The only stipulation was they couldn't leave Diagon Ally and had to return back to the Dursley's next year.

All in all it had been fantastic. The freedom to roam around, practice the practical side of their homework as they did it, three meals a day from the kitchen, and Tom, the barman, had even thrown them a small birthday party.

Today they were meeting the Weasley's and Hermione for a final day of shopping and then heading off to King's Cross station tomorrow.

As Halle descended the stairs she saw Fred and George off to the side talking off to the side, alone, in hushed tones.

"Planning some mischief making there boys," Halle loudly whispered as she came up behind them.

Two identical, freckled faces snapped to look at her so quickly she was surprised they didn't get whiplash. A second later they both busted up laughing and brought her in for a hug.

"Right scared us there Hal" said George

"Yeah," Fred agreed, "Thought mum or someone had overheard us and was going to lay into us again"

"Again?!" Halle asked in surprise shock, "You mean you two did something to make your mother mad. I would have never guessed."

"Hardy har har," Fred responded, just as George said, "People honestly doubt your sass."

Halle just rolled her eyes and asked, "Do either of you know where Harry is?"

"Off with Ron and Hermione I think. Mentioned something about rat tonic for Scabbers and a new mammal friend for Hermione." Fred said. "I doubt they got too far if you want to try and catch up." 

"Oh yeah," George added, "Just beware of Ron and the article. He's showing it to everyone."

"Duly noted," Halle said dryly, "I think I'll just stick around here for now though. Got my fill of the Ally the last few weeks."

So Halle spent the next few hours catching up with the twins and Ginny who eventually wandered her way over to them. They talked of the upcoming school year, their trip, the event that caused her and Harry's stay at the Leaky Cauldron, and successfully avoided the topic of one Sirius Black.

Harry, Ron and Hermione joined them next. Hermione showing off her new cat, which looked remarkably like the one the Potter's had when Halle was a baby, and Ron complaining that Scabbers was never going to be around the retched thing.

It was then that Halle realized she had never actually met Ron's rat. He stayed in the boy's dormitory all through the school year and in Ron's room at the Burrow. Any time he was around on the train he was either hidden in Ron's pocket or she paid him no attention.

As soon as the thought crossed her mind, she dismissed it and moved on to the next subject they had started in on.

Soon the rest of the Weasley family and Hermione's parents joined the younger children and they had a nice long dinner. Halle luckily avoided the article and enjoyed being amongst friends and her and Harry's real family again. Just by catching Harry's eye a few times at dinner she could tell he felt the same way.

When it was time to head to bed, Halle lead Ginny and Hermione to her room, which she was excited to say they were sharing with her. They stayed up late, catching up even more than before and about their respective summers in a way only girls could do.

By the next morning, everyone was half asleep as they made it to the train. With so many people they made it there with only a minute to spare. As the Weasley twins and Ginny went on their way to find their friends, the four third years were left to find their own compartment.

When reaching the end of the train, they realized their only option was the compartment with one other occupant who appeared to be fast asleep. As Halle, the last in the group to walk through the door, reach the entrance, she froze.

As she stared at the sleeping figure a million memories came rushing back, _"I'm really not escaping the past now am I,"_ she thought.

Halle slowly stored her trunk and sat opposite Professor RJ Lupin, as Hermione had so kindly just pointed out, and vaguely made out the story Harry started telling the other two habitants of the compartment. She didn't even move when Draco made his appearance, and appeared to be quite out of it when the Trolley Witch stopped by with snacks.

It was as if she was stuck. Stuck in a time where all her memories were happy. Where a certain uncle, now professor, confided in her. She used to almost feel as if he could tell she understood. He knew her favorite candy, always making sure to sneak some sweets to her and Harry on his visits; knew her first word was ma, soon followed by da, moo-ey, and pad, wormy coming much later; he was the third person she met when she was born and the only one who could get her to sleep the week she started teething. Yes Halle was stuck, stuck in a compartment with a man who was a reminder of the past and unable to pull her mind out of it.

It wasn't until the train stopped that she snapped out of it and stopped looking out of the window.

"Have a nice nap?" Harry asked

"Yeah," said Halle, "sure. Just needed to zone out a bit and daydream."

"What is going on," asked Ron, just as the lights went out.

Hermione quietly responded, "I don't know, but I don't think we're at Hogwarts yet."

Soon their compartment was crowded as Neville and Ginny found their way in.

Not long after that, came the worst feeling in the world.

Halle could sense it before the others did. Their presence was bad enough for everyone else, and she was sure Harry would be badly affected, but Halle felt them coming. Her magic tingled. It wanted to fight the fog that was slowly entering her body and numbing her. But, alas, she couldn't. Not here. Not now. She just had to take it and whatever else happened.

Maybe it was because she was already stuck in the past, but as the Dementor entered the compartment, Halle lost it. She felt Harry pass out next to her, Uncle Moony stand and cast a patronus, and she fought it as hard as she could. As her head hit the ground, the memories came flooding into her mind as fast as the tears streamed down her face.

It would be a while before she woke up, longer than it took for Harry to come around. She was immediately handed chocolate and as she looked up to thank the person it was from, her eyes found Remus' and she tried to keep her face as neutral as possible.

"Eat all of this," he said, "I'll be back soon after I find out how much further we have. Your friends were all worried Halle and I.. I can only imagine what you had to experience." He gave a cough and looked up to the rest of the compartment, "I'll be back soon."


	6. Chapter 5

The start of the year passed in a blur for Halle Potter.

They had started their OWL subjects and life had become significantly more hectic.

While Harry and Ron had taken the easy way out and Hermione had taken the impossible route, Halle was happy with her choice in subject. Care of Magical Creatures, Ancient Runes, and Arithmancy. All subject she knew would serve her well, even if her load was a bit heavy.

It had been a typical year as far as she could tell. Malfoy was a prat, Snape was an ass, and Harry was still in the dark about the happenings of the world around him.

He, Ron and Hermione had been giving her space. If she wasn't mistaken, they could tell something was off and that it wasn't a good idea to pry. Because of this, she found herself spending more time with Fred and George.

The one thing that was bothering her though, was Professor Remus Lupin.

Now, don't get it wrong, Halle knew how he could be. She was certain he didn't imagine either one of them, her or Harry, knew who he was, and was trying to be a caring professor instead of a lovable uncle.

The day before Halloween Halle made up her mind. It was high time she confronted him and there was no way the following day was going to be any easier for him than it was for her.

When Halloween morning came, Halle made her way down to an early breakfast. Once Remus had left she made her way to his office, knowing he was the type to burry himself in his work.

She took a deep breath and knocked.

"Come in" she heard a tired voice say.

Halle opened the door and walked in, closing it behind her.

If Remus was surprised to see her he didn't show it.

"Ah yes, Miss Potter, what can I do for you today?" Remus asked.

"Well," said Halle, "for starters I didn't think you would want to be alone today any more than I did."

Remus' face paled slightly

"Second," she said knowing it was time to get it all out from the start, "you can tell me why my bloody uncle wants to act like he doesn't know who the hell Harry and I are. Did you really think I would forget you? Harry, yeah the kid doesn't remember a thing. But me? I get it. With your.. furry little problem… you couldn't take Harry and I, not that Dumbledore would have let us go anywhere else. And I'm sure he told you not to write or visit, but now? When we are literally in the same bloody castle. You don't even try to see if I know."

Remus sat in shocked silence, but Halle wasn't finished.

She started again after a quick breath, "Dammit, you are my Uncle Moony. You used to sit and talk to me for hours and I couldn't even respond. You had to know that I was comprehending you, right? I didn't just make it all up?"

Halle finally looked Remus in the eye. She saw him take a deep breath this time.

"I'm sorry." He started "It isn't enough, but I am. If I had known…"

He took another deep breath

"After all these years I imagined the day I would see you and Harry again and never could figure out what I would say. I started to wonder if I just was so desperate for someone from that life to know me I had made up you understanding. I should have talked to you, but I'm also your professor now. I had accepted that is all I would be to the two of you and couldn't let myself hope for anything more."

Halle stared for moment.

"Apology accepted," she finally said, "Now we have something else to talk about."

"Oh? We do?" asked Remus.

"Yes and actually, it's a good thing you are sitting down for this."

Remus looked at her expectedly.

"Well," Halle began hesitantly, "as you know I remember you talking with me as a baby.."

With a nod in acknowledgment she continued

"That also means I remember a lot more. Including the fact that at the last minute my parents decided to switch secret keepers to Peter and Sirius is innocent."

It came out so fast, Halle wasn't even sure if he had heard her properly.

If possible, Remus' face got even paler.

"You must be mistaken" his voice cracking as he spoke in a whisper

"That would mean…"

"That my second biggest regret is knowing my innocent godfather was sitting in Azkaban and I was too young to do anything about it." Halle finished for him.

"Yes," said Remus shaking slightly, "but how…"

"The only thing that matters is that you now know too and we can do something about it. Of course assuming you believe me?" Halie asked the question with a raised eyebrow

"I do," Remus said solemnly, "but with no evidence there isn't too much we can do. We don't even have the slightest idea what happened when Sirius killed Peter and all of those people, although it seems very out of character for Padfoot. Just as much as him betraying your parents always seemed."

Halle nodded, "I have my own ideas about that. Peter was a rat, correct? Is it possible it could have been him and he lived? Trying to frame Sirius as a last ditch effort to save his own neck?"

"It is quite possible, but even so, we have no idea where he could be." Said Remus

"Still," Halle said, "we have a starting point. Now with that out of the way, tell me about your life the last 12 years."

Remus and Halle spent the rest of their morning catching up on everything over the last 12 years. Halle was glad to have an uncle back in her life that actually cared about her and Harry's wellbeing and Remus was just happy to have someone to talk to again who knew everything he had been through leading up to this night 12 years ago. It would be a long way to the comfortable relationship they would have had if she had grown up around him, but it was a start.

Eventually, Halle left with thoughts of lunch and homework, and Remus set off to find Harry and talk with him.

Later that afternoon, Ron and Hermione returned from Hogsmeade, and Halle had just about finished the majority of her homework. The three of them and Harry talked about their day, more Ron and Hermione, and then headed down to the Great Hall for the Halloween feast.

After the feast, when the Gryffindor's returned to the common room to find that Sirius Black had tried to break in, Halle had a realization.

Catching Remus' eye across the Great Hall as the students settled in for the night, she knew he had the same one.

The rat was at Hogwarts.


End file.
